Heroines and Hellions: a Limited Edition Urban Fantasy Collection

by Margo Bond Collins

  Suddenly, each troll and tengu in the room turned to the mirror and bowed to it. The surface of the glass stirred like dark water and another tengu appeared within it. He was larger than all the others and had huge, opalescent butterfly wings.

  “That’s the tengu alpha male,” James said, staring at him, frowning. “Never look directly at his wings, they’re hypnotic. One small distraction, and you’re done.”

  “Saraku Sama, what are your orders?” asked one tengu, who must have been the second in command, being bigger than the rest, but still with crow wings.

  “I think he’s speaking ancient Japanese, but we understand anyway because…?”

  “Thank the lamassus and their magic boost,” James whispered back, without taking his eye off the mirror.

  “Our mistress wants to be sure that everything is fine and according to schedule, Naraku,” Sharaku croaked from inside the glass. “Everything must be ready for nightfall tomorrow.”

  “It will be, my lord,” Naraku, the beta male, replied. “We captured the Trixie this morning,” he nodded at the furry creature with yellow eyes, terrified in its small cage. “Everything is proceeding well,” he continued, bowing even more deeply. “The trolls have started preparing the potion, as you ordered.”

  “Very well. Our Mistress is pleased,” Sharaku replied. Then, the surface of the mirror stirred again and something, no, someone emerged from its dark waters. It was the face and chest of an enormous Japanese woman, supernaturally obese. She wore a sumptuous black kimono upon which shone a golden necklace with an emerald the size of a walnut. The emerald was framed in a golden, chiselled Aztec sun.

  “Meet your first Meta-human, Miss Wise,” James said, his voice low with concern. “And that around her neck is the Eye of Xipe. Pretty difficult to retrieve it, eh?”

  “I’ve never seen such a powerful aura!” William exhaled, surprised and scared.

  “Me neither …” I replied, trying to sound calm. “Any idea how we deal with that, Mr Turner? Any suggestions? Strike of genius? Miracles in a box? Hey! What’s going on?” I asked, suddenly aware that the dungeon was fading around us.

  “The spell is ending!” James rushed. “And we still don’t know where this is! We need a clue! Look around!”

  We all quickly scanned the area, but I couldn’t spot anything that suggested the prison’s location. All I could see were tengus and trolls and…my eyes met the fairy’s. She was staring straight at us. I looked at her, wondering if she could somehow see me, but she couldn’t, because I wasn’t really there, right? Maybe not. The fairy looked straight into my eyes, then, raised her hand, pointing at something behind me. I turned and spotted a small transom, up in the wall. So small, that I would have never noticed it in that supernatural mess. It was semi-open and, through it, I could see a bit of pavement illuminated by a single street lamp. And under the street lamp, a typical London rubbish bin. Only, this one was not any rubbish bin. This one had huge, yellow “fight the power” graffiti painted on it, the same as the bin I spotted in front of number 50 in Berkley Square, when Lord Basilton kicked me out of his property. “Mr Turner, I know exactly where the fairy is,” I said calmly, as the dungeon became more and more blurry. “She’s held in the most haunted house in London.”

  6

  Tengus Incoming!

  “That was Okasan you saw, Jim. We had felt the presence of a big shot in town, but we didn’t think it was this big. That’s even worse than we thought. We told you this was a very dangerous matter,” Hank said gravely, after the spell had worn-off and we had told the lamassus the news.

  “Are you sure it’s her we saw? Couldn’t it be another meta-human?” James asked.

  “Nope. It was Okasan. She controls an army of tengus, her second in command is an alpha-male tengu named Sharaku…no mistake here. It’s her,” the lamassu continued, staring into James’ eyes. “Please stay away from this, you’re a good friend to us, Jim, we’d hate to lose you.”

  “I beg your pardon,” William interjected, preventing me from asking my next question. “Could you please be a little clearer here? I understand you know who that woma, err, pardon, meta-human is, right? Could you tell us more? Is she very dangerous?”

  “Dangerous, Ghost?” Hank roared. “My dear fellow, ‘dangerous’ is an understatement, when talking about Okasan. She’s the most lethal meta-human of the entire Eastern world. The mighty Hattory Hanzo, the most powerful wizard of the Eastern hemisphere, has tried several times to kill her. She always manages to escape, after murdering all of Hanzo’s fighting partners, of course. He himself was badly wounded, the last time he faced her.”

  “Oh… OK,” I swallowed. It kept getting better.

  “I believe she’s about to perform a powerful spell, something major,” said Harvey now. “Tomorrow is the first day of Sabbath, the magic fluxes are at their highest, it’s the perfect day to perform something powerful and nasty.”

  “Why do you think she’s here to perform a spell?” James asked, frowning.

  “Well, Okasan stole the Eye of Xipe for a reason. She definitely wasn’t just shopping for new jewellery, you know. And the prisoners you saw aren’t just prisoners. They are ingredients,” Harvey replied. “Gnome blood is used in a restricted number of major dark spells, for instance. As for the wingless fairy, well, she’s the rarest and most powerful ingredient of all, being filled with pure, rejuvenating energy. Okasan is about to perform some major dark spell using the Xipe talisman as a catalyser.”

  The muscles of James’ jaw tightened under his stubble. Although he was wearing a thick tweed jacket, I could see that his back and shoulders were stiffening. He may have been a very talented, experienced wizard, but right now, he was quite distressed. Clearly Okasan posed a threat worse than any other supernatural trouble I had faced before. Still, dropping the ball was out of question. First and foremost, because I had promised to save Megan, after all, and I always keep my promises. Secondly, because James was involved and, although we had only just met, for some unknown reason I trusted him. Massively. I suppose I could already sense his power and strength, and endless courage beneath his humble appearance.

  “What type of dark spell do you think she’s planning?” He finally asked, in a flat tone.

  “Difficult to say,” Harvey interjected. “We’re talking demonic magic here, and of the highest level. It’s no coincidence that she chose the most haunted house in London to perform the spell. Xipe was the god of destruction and rebirth. Taking a wild guess I’d say that she’s preparing some sort of transferring spell, turning the magic of the ‘ingredients’ into dark magic for her master. All the prisoners you described are bearers of positive auras and magic, the fairy being the icing on the cake, so to speak.”

  “I understand,” James mumbled. His lips then turned into a pale, fine line, just like his sister’s whenever she’s concerned.

  “You’re not thinking to give up, are you?” I rushed. “We cannot abandon those people, I mean, they’re not people, but Harvey said that they are good, and my fairy is definitely one of the good guys, right? I cannot turn my back on her!”

  “You must, Miss Wise,” James replied, categorical. “This is far too dangerous for you. Your abilities are mostly passive and cannot help you against such an enemy…”

  “Yeah, listen to him, girl, he’s talking sense!” Hank erupted, enthusiastic.

  “You’re far too young and inexperienced, Miss Wise,” James continued, giving me a patronising look. “I suggest you go home and stay safe.”

  “Amen to that!” Harvey said, relieved. “Your ghost can sing you a lullaby and tuck you into bed.”

  “What? NO!” I roared. “I made a promise, I signed a legally binding contract! There’s no way I…”

  “Child, be reasonable,” Will started. “You saw how many demons and trolls were in that place. It’s too risky indeed! Even Mr Turner is staying away…”

  “That’s not entirely correct, Your Grace,” James interrupted him. “I
said your protégée should go home, not me. I have all the intentions to sneak into that house, retrieve the talisman and free the prisoners…”

  “WHAT?? ARE YOU CRAZY??” The two lamassus yelled at the same time.

  James ignored them and turned to me. “I’m looking forward to meeting your fairy, no wizard has ever seen, let alone talked to a fairy, it will be extremely exciting. You can take the credit for the rescue, I’m a modest hero…”

  “A modest hero, eh?” I replied, giving him a sarcastic look. “And how is Mr Modest Hero planning to break into a meta-human’s lair, if I may ask?”

  “Am I detecting a nuance of sarcasm, here?”

  “Sarcasm? Noooo! Why would I be sarcastic? After all, I know nothing and you know everything, including how to save a fairy whose language and culture you ignore and who, by the way, asked MY help and not yours…”

  “First, she dated a human, so she can definitely speak English. Second, Susan told me you were as stubborn as a mule, but this is ridiculous! You’re just a girl, you go home, period.”

  The lamassus started sniffing the air.

  “Just a girl? So I suppose you get to stay because you’re so old…”

  “Yes, I… NO! I’m not old!” James protested, a vein pulsing on his neck. “Not to wizard standards!”

  “What are you, then?” I asked, giving him a defying look. “Middle age?”

  “Middle age? Me? I wish Susan had told me you were so rude!”

  “Look who’s talking! I can’t believe I came here and actually trusted you! You’re just like everyone else! You just wanted to see the freak and then dismiss me, just like your brother would do…”

  “THAT’S TOO MUCH! HOW DARE YOU COMPARE ME TO MY BROTHER?” He yelled at me, indignant.

  “How dare I? Because you’re behaving just like him! That’s why!”

  “That’s so unfair! I just want to keep you safe! I…”

  “NO! You’re only patronising and underestimating me! And…”

  “Shush!” Hank growled, lifting his head, nervous.

  “You’re not shushing us!” We both protested.

  “What’s up?” James then asked, seeing that Harvey had grown very still and alert.

  “Intruders…supernatural intruders…”

  “What?” James said, taken aback. “I’m not sensing anything!”

  “Neither am I,” I said. “How?…”

  Ear-splitting sound of crystals shattering.

  “That smells like…tengus! Hank roared. “They’re upstairs! Japanese rooms!” He galloped away, followed closely by his brother.

  7

  Hattori Hanzo’s Katana

  “Go hide in my office,” James ordered me. “It has a special protection. Stay there until I come back.”

  He ran after the tengus, without waiting for my reply.

  “Child, I suppose you are not…”

  “Going to do anything he said? Will, you know me so well!” I smiled. “I’m off to the Japanese rooms. Could you please go ahead and give me a heads up?”

  “Of course, my dear. But do be careful…” and he disappeared with a soft ‘pop’.

  I took a deep breath and rushed up the stairs toward James and the others. I had just reached the second flight, when Will’s voice echoed in my head: “The Japanese rooms are swarming with those tengu creatures! The lamassus are fighting fiercely, going to help…”

  “Oh, shit, Will. How many?”

  “Dozens. Maybe a hundred.”

  “My life feels so wrong, Will, so wrong…” I thought, running faster.

  “What the hell are you doing here?” James erupted, as he saw me emerging from the stairs. “I clearly told you…”

  “Mr Turner, I’m not taking orders from you, or anyone else, deal with it,” I snapped back. “The place is packed with tengus.”

  “How do you know?”

  “My ghost is fighting them.”

  “OK, but how?”

  “Let’s go!”

  It took a few seconds to reach the Japanese rooms on the second floor. The main entry was totally blocked by a pile of antique furniture, various artefacts and broken exhibit pieces. In only a few minutes, the tengus had caused a lot of damage. From behind the debris, I could hear sharp, bird-like shrieks, followed by the roars of the lamassus, and the noise of things being smashed and shattered.

  “Step back,” James whispered, the ruby on his ring of power glowed red. “DIA-LUO!” He yelled, and the barrier of furniture instantly broke apart. Through the huge crack, I could see the room was black with tengus. William was right, there were dozens of them. Maybe even more. They were fighting fiercely against the lamassus and William, who was doing his best to help. Good news was that they were all minor demons, none of them had an aura nearly as powerful as Sharaku’s.

  Nevertheless, they were all very aggressive and determined to reach a huge exhibit that Hank and Harvey were defending tooth and nail. Literally. The lamassus killed dozens of them, tearing them with their claws, smashing them against one another. But, more and more came in, probably from some hole in an outside walls.

  Inside the exhibit there was one item only, an ancient katana sword with a green blade. The blade was green because it was made of jade which was so finely cut and worked that it looked like semi-transparent glass. The rest of the katana was very simple, even basic: it had a black hilt and a very simple sheath that one could strap to one’s back with a sort of leather belt, also very basic. This was, of course, unusual since it was a supernatural weapon with a strong magic aura and those kinds of weapons usually had intricate decorations.

  “They bypassed all the protective barriers around the museum, came in unnoticed…” James whispered, more to himself than to me. “Okasan wants that sword badly.”

  “The one in the exhibit? Why?”

  “It was forged by Hattori Hanzo, and is exceptionally powerful. Can’t explain now, but, we must get to it before they do,” his ring glowed for a second, then stopped. “I cannot use any of my explosive spells in such a small space: it could tear apart the building. We need to get closer!”

  “You need a diversion!” I rushed. “Will and I can provide you one. Just give us a few seconds and…”

  “No way. I’m not letting get you in there, it’s swarming with tengus and you… WAIT!”

  “Come along!” I yelled back, jumping into the battle and blithely ignoring his warnings.

  “Hey guys, who likes mangas? I do!” I shouted, smashing a chair on the nearest tengu’s head. “Who wants to fight, Naruto’s style?”

  “You can’t do this!” James said from right behind me.

  “I’ve already done it!” I ducked a tengu with an axe, cut a caper and kicked him in the face.

  “Will, come here and make a fuss! Mr Turner needs a diversion,” I told Will telepathically. My agility kicked in and I smashed an ancient vase on another demon’s head.

  “Right ho, child!” he replied, throwing slime balls right, left and centre, causing the demon to lose its balance and falling right into Harvey and Hank’s lovely arms.

  “I was never that popular with boys,” I told James, kicking a tengu in the face. “But you know, since I’ve started this job, everyone,” I dodged a Japanese axe. “Wants a piece of me…literally,” I continued, cutting a caper to duck a razor-sharp beak.

  “Do you always crack jokes while you’re fighting?” James asked, destroying a tengu with a spell.

  “Yep, it keeps me focused.”

  “Oh… OK… Carry on then” he replied.

  “I admit, I can get pretty chatty,” I said, as I smashed an exhibit into two tengus flying towards us.

  “I can see that.”

  “That doesn’t mean I’m not a serious fighter,” I continued, as both my feet landed skilfully on a tengu’s monstrous face.

  “I can see that too…”

  “James, could you stop chatting with the kid and help us here?” Hank roared.

  “Hey, we ar
e carrying out a strategic plan, here!” I snapped back, ducking a tengu when then smashed into a nearby wall.

  “Oh, sorry girl, I hadn’t realised! My bad!” Hank sarcastically replied, sinking his claws into a tengu’s chest. “It’d better be good…there’s too many in here, even for us.”

  “They’re right, child,” William said, throwing spells and ghost slime all around. “We cannot resist much longer.”

  “We need a bigger diversion, to distract and confuse them, so that Turner can go and take the sword,” I replied, punching and kicking as if there was no tomorrow. “Something catchy and noisy…any ideas?”